Writing scholarships are unique since they ask you to use your words to win one. If you are an aspiring novelist, journalist or enjoy writing poems as a hobby, you may qualify.
Creative writing scholarships are about how you craft a story and develop characters. Essay contest scholarships often ask you to answer a question in a very original and clear way.
As such, each scholarship will have its own set of guidelines to follow. You may need to write a story for a specific topic and meet the word count limit. To apply for a writing scholarship, you’re going to have to write something original.
In some scholarships for writers, applicants must be literature or creative writing majors. Judges of these programs may want to see your transcripts and know about your academic goals along with a completed form.
For other essay scholarships, you might not have to be an English major at all. These can be sweepstakes where there is no essay required. Most of the time, anyone is eligible to enter these sweepstakes.
10 Writing Scholarships You Can Apply For Now
Amy Lowell Travelling Poetry Scholarship
Ayn Rand – Atlas Shrugged Essay Contest
Profile in Courage Essay Contest
Ayn Rand Fountainhead Essay Contest
Optimist International Essay Contest
Visionary Scholarship
L. Rn Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest
Ayn Rand Anthem Essay Contest
Morton Marr Poetry Prize
National Society of High School Scholars Foundation Scholarships
What Writing Scholarships Can Students Apply for?
There are writing scholarships for eligible students at all levels of education. As long as you meet the terms the provider sets, you may apply.
Writing Scholarships for High School Students
The Profile in Courage Essay Contest is open to eligible students in grades 9 to 12. This year’s topic is about political courage. To apply, you will write an essay of up to 1,000 words that has at least 5 sources. You can submit your essay online or by mail. Just make sure to follow the guidelines.
There are 15 awards in all. One first place winner receives $10,000 and one second place winner receives $3,000. Five finalists each receive $1,000 and eight semi finalists each receive $100.
It is available from the Silicon Valley Community Foundation
(SVCF). It was named to honor the author who created the idea for Mickey Mouse.
There are up to two winners. Each winner receives a sum of up to $1,000.
DACA students, US citizens and legal permanent residents may be eligible. Applicants must live in Santa Clara or San Mateo County. To apply, you must send two writing samples. The other required documents are transcripts and grades, personal essay, letters of reference and proof of financial need.
What Creative Writing Scholarships Are Available to Students?
Creative writing scholarships are for eligible English majors and students who like to write a poem, script, fiction or play. You need to be very creative, imaginative and think outside of the box with the provider’s essay question.
Scholarships for Fiction Writers
Writer’s Digest offers Popular Fiction Awards. It is one of their oldest and most popular competitions. One grand prize winner receives $5,000 in cash. 10 other winners receive awards ranging from $25 to $1,000.
To apply, you need to be a US citizen or legal permanent resident and submit an entry fee. You also have to select a creative category. You can choose between spiritual, memoir, rhyming poetry, TV script, children’s fiction and more.
Scholarships for Creative Writing Majors
The Mystery Writers of America (MWA) offers the Helen McCloy Scholarship. It aims to nurture talent in mystery writing of all kinds. Writing topics may include fiction, nonfiction, play writing, and screenwriting.
Although you don’t need to be an MWA member, you do need to
be a serious aspiring mystery writer. Applicants must also be a US citizen or
legal permanent resident.
MWA will award $500 each to two winning writers. You may use the money to offset tuition and fees for writing workshops, seminars or college level writing programs.
How to Write a Winning Scholarship Essay?
To write a scholarship essay, you want to be creative and follow the essay instructions. Here are five helpful tips to write your next winning scholarship essay.
1. Understand the essay question
You can only write a solid essay answer if you understand the question. When the question is direct, be direct when you answer it. If not, judges will spot the confusion no matter how good your writing is. Here’s an example: What are you planning to study in college and why? “In college, I plan to major in writing because…”
2. Reel the audience in
Open your essay with a hook or clear beginning. This captivates the reader’s attention. It may help judges who have to read many essays remember yours better. Of course, once you have reeled your reader in, keep up the good work.
Don’t stray off topic. Use the rest of your essay for more in depth details and examples. Then, conclude your essay to tie up all of your points. This shows the judges you used an outline and organized your thoughts well.
3. Follow the scholarship guidelines
Judges often have hundreds of essays to score. So, most essay scholarships have guidelines to help them reach a decision. Word count is the most common guideline to meet. So, even very creative essays may get points deducted if they are too wordy.
4. Spell check and proofread your essay
Make sure to proofread a few times and spell check your entire essay before submitting it. Also, proofread for any grammatical errors. If it helps, you may print out your essay and read it off screen. Spell check software does not pick up mistakes related to context. For instance, you may spell “their” correctly but intended to write “there”. Try to avoid these mistakes along with slang.
5. Don’t copy anyone
Many scholarship providers do not tolerate plagiarism which is unethical. You should tell a story that resonates with your personal goals and experiences. Be original and write from the heart so that your essay stands out.
Why You Should Apply for a Scholarship?
Writing scholarships may be useful if you want to pay for college. The money can offset tuition, fees, books and other expenses. You may be able to use a scholarship along with federal grant money too. And, unlike loans, you don’t repay these funds.
According to the NCES, cost varies by type of school. Also, a four year degree in creative writing is on the rise. If you choose an in state public college, tuition is about $7,368. If you study at a private college for out of state students, tution costs $35,878.
Many writing and essay scholarships are easy to apply for. They may also be less competitive than ones that assess your grades. A final point, if you win, you get to add it to your resume and list of accomplishments.
List of Writing Scholarships
Check out our list of writing scholarships below. We have awards worth .
The American Bullion Scholarship is open to legal residents of the U.S. and students holding a valid U.S. visa. Students must be currently enrolled in college/university, and must submit an essay on the current year’s topic relating to gold.
This essay contest is open to students who will be enrolled in a college or university as of the application deadline date. The scholarship is limited to students attending school in the 50 United States.
This scholarship is open to U.S. students who are 16 to 19 years of age and are planning to enroll or are enrolled in an institution of higher education. Students must submit an essay related to a Branson (MO) show; students may research if they have not seen a show in person.
This scholarship contest is available for currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate students studying in the U.S. Use your creative writing to help you win a $500 scholarship!
This scholarship is open to high school seniors and current college/university students in the United States and Canada. Students must submit an essay on one of the current year’s topics to apply.
This scholarship is open to undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at a college, university, or trade school in the United States or Canada. Students must submit an essay to apply.
This scholarship contest is available for middle school and high school students in the U.S. Applicants must submit an original work of art, poetry, prose, or film that discusses a specific aspect of ocean pollution.
The Horror Writers Association (HWA) has established two $2500 Scholarships to assist in the professional development of horror writers:
The Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Scholarship,
and the Horror Writers Association Scholarship.
These rules also broadly apply to the other scholarships. Please click here for the Rocky Wood Memorial Scholarship information, click here for rules for the Dark Poetry Scholarship, click here for the Dennis Etchison Scholarship, click here for the Diversity Grants, click here for the Young Adults Write Now Endowments, and click here for The Scholarship From Hell.
The Scholarships are effectively two facets of the same award; applicants enter the same competition using the same application form. A sub-committee of the HWA Board chooses the scholarship winners from that pool of applicants. The Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Scholarship is available for those members who identify as women and the Horror Writers Association Scholarship is available for any member, regardless of gender.
LaFleur is your forward-thinking digital marketing partner who offers a scholarship to currently enrolled students at a 4-year institution or community college as well as high school seniors. All applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 and confirmation of college enrollment at a 4-year institution or community college.
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are the nation’s?longest-running,?most?prestigious?recognition program for creative teens.?Submissions for the 2021 Scholastic Awards?open?on?September 1, 2020. Deadlines?vary?between December 2020?and?January 2021, depending on your region.?Visit our website to find out your regional deadline and how to enter. For more information, contact [email protected].
